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If your company wants to compete in the global marketplace, there’s no question you need to consider website translation and localization. Website translation is just one aspect of localization, but it’s an important part of the process.

So once you’ve decided to translate your company’s website to the language of the market you’re targeting, how do you make sure it stands out among the competition? After all, English is the primary language of only 25 percent of internet users. It follows that many of the other 75 percent of internet users are conducting searches in some other language, meaning that website translation and multilingual SEO go hand-in-hand.

Yes, incorporating SEO into your website translation is another step. But given all the work you’ve put in to perfect your English-language website and the effort it takes to translate web pages, it would be a shame to let it go to waste when potential customers can’t find you.

You may not realize it, but two laws aimed at improving communication with limited-English-proficient (LEP) beneficiaries will go into effect in 2018.

If yours is a home-health agency seeking to participate in Medicare or a health-insurance company that offers plans for employees, you will want to pay attention to these new laws so as to stay in compliance.

However, if your organization is committed to providing all patients with the best possible care at every stage, it’s not enough. That’s why it’s so important to consider the entire patient experience—and your entire organization—as you think about your document translation needs for the coming year.

More than 40 percent of California residents speak a language other than English. It is also a state in which there is a significant mismatch between the second languages spoken by its physicians and the primary languages spoken by its patients.

Nearly 7 million California residents are considered limited English proficient (LEP), meaning they speak English “less than very well.” At last count, nearly a quarter of the nation’s total LEP population lived in this one state. In an effort to increase access to language services for these individuals, Governor Jerry Brown recently approved California Senate Bill No. 223 Chapter 771.

Here are five significant aspects of the law and their significance to healthcare organizations throughout the nation:

Many people who could enroll for insurance through the ACA (also known as Obamacare) don’t know this. With the current administration still pushing for repeal, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services cut funding for advertising that would promote the enrollment period by 90 percent.

The lack of information is apparently working, as 30 percent of uninsured people are unaware the ACA exists, and 60 percent of those already enrolled don’t know when the open enrollment period is, according to a recent Kaiser Health Tracking Poll. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office says that 4 million fewer people will sign up for private insurance through the ACA than previously forecast.

If this confusion exists for the general population, just imagine how acute the issue must be for those who are limited English proficient (LEP)?

Every challenge presents an opportunity. In this case, insurance companies and state health marketplaces have the chance to add new enrollees by getting the word out to LEPs.

Driven by population growth and expanding buying power, multicultural consumers are transforming the ways marketers and advertisers use culture to connect with increasingly diverse consumer markets. For businesses, this is why investments made now in language will pay off for decades to come.

But no matter how wonderful your store’s shopping experience and customer service are, they’re only effective once someone is in the store. Let’s talk about how retailers are using language to market to multicultural consumers.

After taking a lyrical break since the birth of her twins in June, Beyoncé is back – and showing off her Spanish skills – with new material to support hurricane and earthquake relief.

The track is a remix of the J Balvin and Willy William hit song, “Mi Gente," a Spanish title that translates to "My People."

“I am donating my proceeds from this song to hurricane relief charities for Puerto Rico, Mexico, and the other affected Caribbean islands,” the singer wrote today on Instagram. She directed followers to learn more and donate at Beyonce.com/reliefefforts.

The news this year has been filled with headlines about the “retail apocalypse,” a wave of bankruptcies, store closures and layoffs sweeping the retail sector. But while the situation is critical, it’s possible that reports of brick-and-mortar retail’s death have been greatly exaggerated.

It’s true that online shopping presents a challenge to traditional stores, but only a few of the biggest names in retail are online-only, and even that is changing as giants like Amazon and smaller companies like Warby Parker make forays into the physical world. In addition, consumers continue to prefer shopping in-store, including 70 percent of millennials and 77 percent of Gen Z.

As retailers figure out strategies to survive and thrive, one factor that might not seem obvious to consider is adding language services. Why?

When we say "Asian-American," we are saying a lot. The U.S. Asian population is a diverse one. A record 20 million Asian-Americans trace their roots to more than 20 countries in East and Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent. Each has a unique history, culture, language, and other characteristics.